Ingredient suppliers evolve to satisfy artisan demand

KANSAS CITY — As artisan bread becomes more and more popular, ingredient suppliers are evolving to meet the demands and challenges of this dynamic industry.

“Consumers associate artisan breads with freshness, authenticity and high-quality ingredients, so they align well with many of the emerging trends we’re seeing in the larger food industries,” said Andy Vollmar, director of food ingredients and specialty grains for Maumee, Ohio-based The Andersons Inc.

The trend can be explained largely by three “S” words, Mr. Vollmar said: storytelling, simplicity and sustainability.

“Consumers are curious, and they want to know where their food comes from,” he said. “Artisan bread makers are realizing they need to share the story behind their products. Because of this, bakers are demanding a stronger connection to the farm, and we are well-positioned to facilitate that transparency in the supply chain. We regularly connect bakers with the farmers who are growing their ingredients.”

Demand for simple, pure ingredients among consumers also plays a role, Mr. Vollmar said. That’s why The Andersons’ products contain no additives and are made from 100% whole grains.

Don Trouba, senior director, go-to-market for specialty products for Denver-based The Annex by Ardent Mills, said there’s “an allure” to trying foods that were popular more than a century ago.

“Ancient grains have a history, a locality and an ethnic tradition that many consumers find simple, comforting and reassuring,” he said.

And the uptick in use of ancient grains has been accompanied by an increased interest in artisan, he said.

“Breads made with things like white sonora, rye and spelt are re-emerging,” he said. “In the past, wheat varieties were chosen for high yield and ease of growing. More and more, we are seeing more farmers looking to do something different and wanting to add more value to their farm.”

Scott Simon, director of technical service for ADM Milling, a division of Chicago-based Archer Daniels Midland, said that as the sandwich category evolves by offering more trendy, higher-end choices to entice consumers, the profile of gourmet artisan bread, which offer value and differentiation in food service operations, is rising.

“Artisan quality in retail-packaged bread is a growing trend,” Mr. Simon said. “Developers are putting a greater emphasis on higher quality flours and the inclusion of hearty specialty ingredients in addition to the use of special culinary processes.”

Courtney Schumacher, bakery marketing specialist for Beloit, Wis.-based Kerry, a division of Ireland-based Kerry Group, agreed that artisan bread is continuing to become more popular in the United States. As consumers become more aware of what they’re eating, she said, they’re demanding a return to more natural- and artisan-type bread, like sourdough.

“In addition to allowing consumers to feel better about what they’re eating, artisan breads are perceived as being more premium than traditional sliced bread,” Ms. Schumacher said.

And with nearly three out of four U.S. bread-eating consumers willing to pay more for better quality bread, she said, citing Mintel data, artisan, small-batch breads help satisfy consumer demand for better quality, premium products.

“We also provide in-depth technical expertise and consumer insights that help developers move from concept to launch faster to capitalize on this trend as quickly as possible,” he noted.

Artisan bread baking is a long process, Mr. Simon said. Not only that: the use of limited ingredients means tolerance and consistency challenges can make growth and scale-up difficult. He said ADM works closely with developers to create custom solutions that can help minimize these problems.

Incorporating whole grains and seeds in combination can create unique flavors and textures and a rustic, artisanal aesthetic, said Jerome Davis, technical solutions analyst at Innovative Bakery, a Tualatin, Ore.-based division of Ardent Mills dedicated to artisanal bread making at scale.

“Seasonal bread loaves have become increasingly popular,” he said. “Pumpkin spice bread and apple strudel bread are popular in fall and winter. Spring and summer favorites include peach cobbler and blueberry bread.”

Kerry produces a wide range of clean label ingredients for artisan bread, says Peggy Dantuma, the company’s director of technical sales. Products include biobake enzymes for shelf life and processing, sunflower lecithin for dough tolerance, non-allergan glaze for enhanced appearance and seasonings and natural bread flavors. Also on the roster: Kerry’s UpGrade, a natural antimicrobial ingredient used to replace chemical preservatives, such as calcium propionate, which can be applied to yeast-raised and chemically leavened breads.

Ms. Dantuma said top sellers include glazes, enzymes and fermented ingredients to differentiate product appearance and remove chemical ingredients.

From peppery amaranth to buckwheat’s rich notes, grains are getting more attention for the complex flavors, textures and color variation they bring to baking, and artisan bakers and their suppliers are capitalizing on it, Mr. Trouba said.

New grains, new capabilities

“We’ve seen more interest in rye flour, which is milled from whole rye berries and is closely related to wheat flour,” Mr. Trouba said. “It has its own distinct flavor and is slightly darker than more traditional wheat, depending on how much of the bran stays intact.”

Jewish rye and pumpernickel are the standards when it comes to rye, but more bakers are experimenting with the grain and breaking away from the familiar application of Jewish rye with caraway seeds, Mr. Trouba said.

The Andersons Inc. offers both conventional and organic specialty flours milled from high-quality grains used to make artisan bread, Mr. Vollmar said. The Andersons also supplies a line of ancient grains, cereal grains, corn, pulses and soybeans and oilseeds, and the company works directly with a large network of growers and procures ingredients from a variety of sources.

“This allows us to work alongside bakers to provide the high-quality ingredients that help make their products come to life,” Mr. Vollmar said.

Most recently, The Andersons began introducing a line of puffed, partially puffed and flaked grains, including quinoa, amaranth, and brown rice — all of which, Mr. Vollmar said, can add bite-friendly texture to artisanal baking applications. The Andersons’ product lineup, he said, is constantly evolving to keep up with the natural foods movement and changes in consumer preferences.

“While we’ve been a well-known corn and cereal grains supplier for many years, we’ve recently expanded those offerings to include more label options (Non-GMO Project-verified, organic, kosher) and additional varieties,” Mr. Vollmar said.

The Andersons also has added several new product lines, including ancient grains, pulses, soybeans and oilseeds.

And by adding processing capabilities such as cleaning, milling, splitting and puffing, the company can offer its customers a more valuable finished product that they can use in a variety of applications. The company’s Purity Foods brand has been a recognized supplier spelt for years, he said. In addition, The Andersons recently invested in more storage so that it’s able to inventory additional products that are emerging as leaders in the artisanal category.

“We’re receiving more and more inquiries for additional ancient grain flours such as amaranth, buckwheat and emmer, as well as cereal grain flours like barley, rye and whole wheat, and pulse flours such as garbanzo bean and lentil,” he added.

Kerry’s product mix also has evolved over the years, Ms. Dantuma said, as more emphasis has been placed on clean label ingredients that meet consumers’ flavor and nutrition expectations while also maintaining processing integrity.

The company’s size and trans-Atlantic footprint helps give it an edge on the competition when it comes to product development and customer service, Ms. Dantuma said.

“Kerry is prime in the manufacture of a very broad portfolio of artisan ingredients allowing formulation flexibility on a global scale,” she noted.

In the past three years, Ardent Mills has added organic durum, organic cracked wheat and organic spelt to its product mix, said Shrene White, general manager of The Annex.

“As the category continues to grow, manufacturers are trying to balance the desire for automation to deliver tolerance and consistency yet retain authenticity,” he said. “Most artisan bakers want to limit the use of regulating ingredients like dough conditioners which makes selecting the right flour critical for managing fluctuations in the process.”

ADM’s technical experts can help advise on the ingredients and process needed to maintain greater tolerance and consistency, he added.

A major driver of the artisan bread market, Ms. Schumacher said, is consumers’ longing for authentic taste experiences. Kerry is able to capitalize on this demand, she says, with its bread flavors portfolio, which includes fermented flavors and dairy flavors. Both help deliver authentic taste experiences to artisan breads, she says.

Challenges — and solutions

Servicing the artisan bread market is not without its challenges, Ms. Schumacher said.

“Bakeries all have different requirements around nutrition and clean label, especially in the artisan bread category,” she said. “This can create challenges for any supplier as it forces them to deliver a range of different solutions.”

Kerry is able to address these challenges head on with UpGrade, Biobake and its other clean label solutions, she said.

One challenge The Andersons faces when it comes to artisan bread is the sheer number of ingredient variations the company’s customers request, says Andy Vollmar, director of food ingredients and specialty grains for The Andersons. To address that, The Andersons has made investments in its facilities to create storage that is better equipped to handle a larger number of items.

“Some of the ingredient requests we receive are very specific, and we first need to work with our grower network to get the crop in the ground so we can ultimately build out the supply chain,” he said. “This can result in a longer lead time, but ultimately it allows bakers to use custom ingredients to create products that are unique in the marketplace.”

Artisan bakers need to consider consistency of supply when they’re thinking of adding heirloom wheat and ancient grains to their product mixes, said Abbey Heikes, who works in regional specialty sales for The Annex.

“For larger-scale baking, spelt and rye are heirloom varieties that are more widely available and also have similar functionality to modern wheat, so bakers can use the varieties in many styles of baking,” Ms. Heikes said. “Things like red fife and white sonora can be harder to source on a consistent basis, but as more small-scale bakers use these varieties, we expect demand and supplies to increase.”

Ardent Mills is in the process of evaluating different sized bakeries to better understand what different bakers want and how ingredients would be used, from hand-shaping only to bakeries that are partly automated, Ms. Heikes said.

Mr. Simon said that, with ADM, developers can find “a complete solution for their latest artisan bread innovation.” The company’s wide variety of on-trend ingredients — including white and whole wheat flours, milled products, pulses, heritage grains, oils, sweeteners, nuts, seeds and dried fruit — in addition to an extensive portfolio of flavor options for developers in this space, guarantee that every baker can find what he or she needs to thrive in the artisan space, he said.